Story of an Unlikely Princess
by MusicWeaver
Summary: A girl from a world much like ours suddenly finds herself in Middle Earth. A story of what she does and how she lives in her new home. Not a Mary Sue, I promise.


This is the first fanfiction I have ever posted, so that's exciting and nerve-wracking. The chapters won't always follow one after the other, but will often be more like separate episodes in the life of my OC. Sorry about that! I'll give a general idea of when each chapter (after this one) takes place. Constructive criticism is appreciated!

Prologue

Erin picked her way down the hill to the bottom of the ravine, where the stream wound among the rocks and cottonwood trees. She stood on the riverbank for a while, watching the water flow by. She relished the peace and quiet of the ravine, almost a mile away from the noisy orphanage that was the only home she had ever known. Then, she felt an urge to run with the stream, so she turned to face downstream and began to run. Erin ran, her chestnut-auburn hair flying behind her, until her legs began to burn and her heart raced and she was drinking in big gulps of air to combat the burn in her legs and lungs. Just as she was starting to think about stopping, her red sneaker caught on a rock. Erin tried to recover her balance, but she couldn't. She fell forward, hands out to break her fall, but as she fell the world turned black, and she never felt the impact.

Paradigm Shift

Erin had no idea how long it was before she woke up. She lay still for a moment, laying on her stomach, to take stock of herself. To her surprise, she felt no pain in either her hands, knees, or head. Miraculously, it seemed as if she had managed to completely avoid hurting herself in the fall. Satisfied that she had sustained no serious damage, Erin rolled onto her back and sat up. That was when she noticed that something was different. She sat on the grass near a stream, but the stream seemed wider than she remembered, and deeper, clearer. Huge, moss-covered rocks lay beside it, and trees rose around her, but not the familiar cottonwoods. These trees were huge, covered in lichen and moss, and they seemed positively ancient. The ground to her right no longer slanted up toward the flat, open land on which the orphanage stood. It seemed as if the forest around her went on forever. It also appeared to be late afternoon, judging by the gathering gloom under the thick canopy. Erin moved to sit on her knees, looking this way and that; curious, but not yet frightened by the vast strangeness around her.  
"We're not in Arkansas anymore, Toto," Erin paraphrased to no one in particular. Then something caught the corner of her eye. She turned her head to look, but there was nothing there. Erin looked back toward the stream and waited; there it was again! This time, she didn't whip her head around. She just turned her head slightly until she could see an indistinct, human-shaped figure standing beside a large tree. After a moment's thought, Erin softly called:  
"Who's there? Come out please, so I can see you."

There was a brief pause, and then the figure moved forward. When the person stepped out from among the trees, Erin stood up and turned to face it. It was a man, she realized, although he was the strangest man she had ever seen. He was much taller than her; about six feet tall, she would guess. He was built along slender lines, like a runner or a swimmer, and his stance spoke of an easy, fluid grace and strength that Erin was used to seeing in horses. He was wearing brown boots, gray pants, and a long-sleeved green and brown tunic-shirt, and over everything hung a grey-green cloak that seemed to shift in the dim, changing light. She saw a knife on his belt, and over his shoulder she thought she saw the fletching of arrows. His face was what captured her attention, though. He was fair-skinned, and his eyes were a clear grey-blue. His features were fine but strong, and ethereally handsome, like some statue of a Greek god. His hair was pale gold and appeared to fall at least halfway down his back. To add to the strangeness, he seemed to glow slightly in the twilight—or perhaps what light there was just gathered around him.

"Who are you?" she asked. His eyes seemed to sparkle, and she thought that his lips twitched in suppressed amusement.  
"My name is Legolas," he said. "And who are you?" As he introduced himself, he tilted his head in a sort of greeting, and his hair fell away from his ear. Erin stared; the top of his ear came to an elegant point. She had read enough books to guess what that meant.  
"My name's Erin," she said. "Are you…an elf?" Legolas' lips twitched again.  
"Yes, I am," he said. Erin just stared at him for a moment, allowing that to sink in. Then she gave a low, thoughtful whistle.  
"I am definitely not in Arkansas anymore," she muttered under her breath. Legolas raised an eyebrow.  
"I do not know where Arkansas is," he said, "But at this moment you are in the forest of Fangorn." Erin looked at him sharply.  
"You heard me?" she asked, incredulous. He nodded.  
"Elves' hearing is far keener than that of humans," Legolas said.  
"Oh," Erin said, at a loss for something better to say. Legolas tilted his head to one side, seemingly puzzled about something.  
"How come you to be in Fangorn?" he asked. "It is not a place that usually welcomes young girls." Erin had less of a clue than he did, so she shrugged.  
"I was running," she said, "Alongside a stream near my home. Then I tripped and blacked out, and woke up right here." Legolas' smooth brow furrowed.  
"I do not know how that is possible," he said. "Perhaps wizardry of some sort. Regardless, you cannot remain here on your own." Something in his tone caused Erin to lift her chin. He was a stranger, after all, although somehow Erin already trusted this strange being.  
"I suppose you think I should go with you?" she asked. Again, the almost-smile tugged at Legolas' lips. He moved to the stream and, kneeling, began to fill up several flasks of water.  
"I don't see that you have any choice," he said. "Fangorn is not friendly to humans." Erin frowned, but he surely knew this place better than she did, so noticing the flasks he carried, she asked:  
"Do you have companions?" Legolas glanced at her and then at the canteens in his hands. He nodded.  
"Yes, two," he said. Then he stood and gestured for Erin to follow. "Come," he bade her. Lacking any other plan, Erin followed the elf through the trees, wondering at the utter silence of his movement.

After a brisk five minute walk, Erin heard soft voices from up ahead. A moment later, her elven guide called out softly:  
"Aragorn, Gimli, I have returned." The quiet voices were replaced with the sounds of movement. Then Erin and Legolas came around a screen of underbrush and Erin saw the elf's companions for the first time. One was a man, with dirty, wavy black hair that fell almost to his shoulders, a short scruffy beard, and grey eyes. He was dressed in dark green and brown and wrapped in a cloak like Legolas'. He looked like he hadn't bathed in days, but despite his rather ragged appearance, he had an air of command, yet also of gentleness. Erin also saw the hilt of a sword beneath his cloak and the fletching of arrows over his shoulder. The other person was very short—shorter than Erin herself—but he was clearly an adult. He was broad-shouldered, with long red hair and a long red beard, and a grim looking face. He was dressed in a combination of leather and chain mail, and wore a cloak like the other two. In his hands he carried an axe. He didn't look any cleaner than the man, and Erin realized that he must be a dwarf.

"Did you find water, princeling?" the dwarf asked Legolas gruffly. _Princeling?_ Erin thought, curious. She glanced at Legolas, wondering if he would take offense at the dwarf's tone, but he just smiled a little.  
"Yes, I did," Legolas said, holding up the flasks. "And I found something else as well," he added, turning to Erin. "Erin," he continued, "This is Aragorn, son of Arathorn; and Gimli, son of Gloin." He gestured as he spoke, and Erin understood that the man was Aragorn and the dwarf, Gimli. "Mellon-ínath," Legolas said, "This is Erin. I found her by the stream."  
"Found her by the stream?" Gimli repeated, incredulous. "How does a human child come to be wandering about this forsaken wood?" Legolas frowned a little at the disparaging reference to the forest, but Aragorn looked curious.  
"It is curious," he said, thoughtfully. Then he looked at Erin, and his eyes were kind and piercing at once.  
"How did you come to be here, Erin?" Aragorn asked, unwittingly echoing Legolas' query from before. Erin gave Aragorn the same explanation that she had given Legolas. Aragorn had a pensive look on his face when she finished. He looked at Legolas.  
"What say you, Legolas?"  
"I say we cannot but bring her with us," Legolas responded. "It is not safe for her to be alone, and she can easily keep up for now, because tracking the halflings is such slow going."

Erin wasn't sure that she liked them talking about her literally over her head, so she interjected with a question.  
"What are you tracking? Half of what things?" she asked. The dwarf, Gimli, chuckled.  
"Half-lings," he said, enunciating. "We call them so because they stand only about half the height of a man, but are built more along the lines of men than of dwarves. They call themselves Hobbits, and they are known to the elves as Periannath, I believe." Erin glanced at Legolas, who nodded confirmation to Gimli's statement.  
"Oh," Erin said, "so they are people, not animals, then." Aragorn nodded.  
"Aye. Our friends, two hobbits, were kidnapped several days past. They escaped their captors at the edge of this wood, and fled in here. We are tracking them, because this wood is dangerous, but hobbits can be very stealthy when they wish to be, so it is slow going. Legolas is right, you know. Fangorn is no place for a human child alone. Will you come with us?" The three companions looked at Erin expectantly.  
"I don't suppose I have any other viable options," she finally said. She didn't want to sound too eager to go traipsing around with three strangers, but they were seeking to rescue their friends, which was a good sign, and there was an air of nobility and kindness about them, even the gruff-sounding Gimli. Truth be told, Erin was intrigued by this new world, and something in her blood was stirred by the idea of adventure.

"Yes, I will come." She said decisively. The others nodded, and the three of them picked brown packs up off the ground.  
"All you must remember is to stay behind me," Aragorn said. "That way you will not disturb the signs of their passage."


End file.
